What I do at work:

I create software. Primarily I'm a software developer, but more often these days my time is divided between managing the development tasks of our employees and designing new software systems for our clients. Occasionally we also do a bit of consultancy.

How I got my job:

A few years ago I was approached by a couple of friends who had the idea to set up our own software company. We first met working for a mutual friend a few years previously and it seemed the right time for us to start a company where we'd have the opportunity to create great software in the right way.

My first job:

I'd just graduated from University and didn't really have any clear idea of what I wanted to do. The brother of my brother's friend had a software company that needed to grow quickly so I was offered the job on the strength of a recommendation rather than my CV or an interview. It was there that I developed a passion for creating software and was lucky that I had a great mentor who convinced me the value of learning everything I could and staying on top of all the latest developments in the software industry.

Best advice I ever got:

It can never really be one thing as there are myriad things that you hear or read that are so important and you can't really gauge their effect until much later. But the most memorable thing I ever read was written in a card from a friend just before I embarked on a year out in Australia and NZ:
"A grapefruit is merely a lemon that had an opportunity and took it."